Younger residents soon eligible, but officials enforcing vaccination order

OMAHA, Neb. -- Douglas County could start giving coronavirus vaccinations to residents who are at least 16 years old by mid-April, catching up with parts of rural Nebraska that have already moved onto that phase.

The Douglas County Public Health District lists the timeline on its website, and local public health officials say it seems realistic.

Other public health districts have started vaccinating younger residents, including the Public Health Solutions Health Department, which represents Fillmore, Gage, Jefferson, Saline and Thayer Counties in southeastern Nebraska.

Health officials in the district say they're vaccinating residents who are at least 18 years old.

Meanwhile, back in Omaha, while progress is being made, the Douglas County Health Department is cracking down on people trying to get the vaccine who still don’t yet qualify.

Officials with the DCHD says they recently canceled roughly 200 scheduled vaccine appointments made by people who don’t qualify.

They said someone who worked for an Omaha company got a copy of a registration link and shared it with employees that didn't qualify.

Health officials said they are glad to see enthusiasm for the vaccine but are asking people to wait a bit longer.